I’ve been out of sorts for some days. Hopefully I shall be posting again on Monday.
Monthly Archives: September 2014
Tony Abbott finds his inner central planner causing Mises and Hayek to rollover in their graves
Gerard Jackson
It seems that the Tony Abbott administration has discovered its inner central planner by approving a “competitiveness agenda” (code for industry policy) that will use taxpayers’ money to fund those economic activities where Australia has the greatest advantage, leading one to wonder why they would need public funding if they are that strong. Picking winners always leads to even greater political meddling in the economy and, if implemented, Abbott’s proposal will be no different. His policy also envisages ‘cooperation’ between businesses, training colleges, universities and schools. Funny thing, though, is that Mussolini had a similar vision: he called it corporatism. Continue reading Tony Abbott finds his inner central planner causing Mises and Hayek to rollover in their graves
The minimum wage, economics and dishonest studies
Gerard Jackson
Nottrampis made comments about my post on wages and the fallacy behind union bargaining. My thesis, as he called it, is an economic law. To wit: if you price the services of any good above its market clearing price you will get a surplus. And that also goes for labour. The Great Depression testifies to that fact.
Arindrajit Dube is one of the 5 so-called economists that Nottrampis referred to. Now if Dube’s ‘analysis’ were right then there would be no youth unemployment in America. Yet when he published his study in 2010 youth unemployment had averaged about 18 per cent for the year. It is now 2014 and he is still peddling his snake-oil even though youth unemployment is still being reported at crisis levels. Continue reading The minimum wage, economics and dishonest studies
Passing thoughts on wages and the fallacy behind union bargaining
Gerard Jackson
My post on the minimum wage got me involved in a couple of exchanges regarding the determination of wages rates in the market place, hence this post. Now free market economists are perfectly correct in pointing out that unions justify their existence on the basis of the alleged “imbalance of bargaining power” that lies with employers. According to union apologists, particularly in the media and the Australian Industrial Relations Commission, employees must combine if they are to get a fair wage.
Unfortunately, these economists rarely attempt to explain why the “imbalance of power” concept is another dangerous fallacy. This is a particularly egregious failing on their part considering that union apologists have sometimes even drawn on the writing of Adam Smith in support of their actions. In fact, one could even argue that it was Adam Smith who fathered the “imbalance of power” idea. According to Smith: Continue reading Passing thoughts on wages and the fallacy behind union bargaining